In the market for quality mated beef heifers?
If so, mark Friday, January 12 into your diary, as the annual Elders Special Beef Female Sale is a great place to source your replacement breeders.
Starting at 11.30am, the fixture has forged a strong reputation for the quality females from regular and new sale vendors and will feature 657 PTIC heifers and 28 PTIC cows which won't disappoint with their breeding and presentation.
The line-up of PTIC heifers will comprise of 537 Angus, 53 Red Angus, 61 Murray Grey and six Speckle Park heifers which are PTIC to Angus, Murray Grey or Red Angus bulls.
The line-up of PTIC cows will be made up Angus first calvers that have been joined to Angus bulls and they are a genuine line.
All the females on offer have been inspected by Elders, South West livestock representatives Michael Carroll and Alex Roberts, so the quality on offer cannot be questioned.
Mr Carroll said the sale would feature another first-class line-up of beef females put together by the Elders South West livestock team.
"The heifers have been specially selected as future breeders for this prestigious sale," Mr Carroll said.
"The vendors need to be commended for the job they have done with the heifers in regards to selecting and joining the heifers specifically for this annual female sale fixture.
"When we did our pre-sale inspections the heifers were looking really good considering the early finish we have had to the season.
"Not only will buyers be able to purchase with extreme confidence in regards to quality of the heifers but also their pregnancy and health status.
"All the joined females on offer have been pregnancy tested in calf and have a vendor guaranteed maximum 12 weeks calving plus there will also be a select number which have been synchronised AI joined and have a 20 day calving.
"All the heifers have also passed a Pestivirus ear notch test with many marked in the catalogue as 'Elders Immune Ready' where the heifers have had two doses of 7in1 clostridial vaccination and two doses of Pestigard giving added assurance to buyers.
"A full catalogue will be available on sale day."
Mr Roberts said the sale would see many long-term regular vendors supporting it with their annual consignments.
"Our vendors have presented us again with another outstanding yarding of quality females which buyers will not be disappointed in," he said.
"It is an even and outstanding line-up of mated heifers across all breeds.
"The sale will provide a great opportunity for producers to secure young mated females with their whole lives ahead of them."
This year's biggest vendor of PTIC heifers will be the Corker family, AD & RM Corker, Kirup, with a total draft of 100 PTIC rising two-year-old Angus heifers purchased as weaners from reputable South West breeders of quality Angus cattle.
Elders, Donnybrook representative Pearce Watling said the heifers from the Corkers were beautiful feminine females that were very quiet.
"They are based on Mordallup, Coonamble and Lawsons Angus bloodlines," Mr Watling said.
"They will make very good breeders."
The Corker family's consignment is in calf to Monterey and Tullibardine Angus bulls and are due to calve from March 3 to May 5 (nine week calving period).
The heifers have been treated in line with Elders Immune Ready program and in addition had a Multimin and Dectomax drench in early May.
Unicup-based producers RW Bevan have nominated 90 Angus heifers as well as the line of 28 Angus first calvers, which are all genuine dispersal lines.
The heifers were all synchro AI to low birthweight Angus bulls on June 2 and then backed up by Gandy and Mordallup Angus sires from June 2 to September 4 which gives the line a 10 week calving starting from March 4.
When it comes to the 28 first calvers on offer from RW Bevan, they are PTIC to Gandy and Mordallup Angus bulls and are due to calve from March 4 to May 13.
The Watt family, GJ & J Watt, Cowaramup, will also be among the largest vendors when they present a total draft of 85 rising PTIC two-year-old Angus heifers comprising 37 synchro AI mated and 48 bull joined.
The synchro mated heifers are due to calve for 20 days from February 24 to Chiltern Park Moe M6.
When it comes to the naturally joined heifers they are carrying calves by Blackrock Angus bulls.
In this line there will be 30 heifers that are due to calve for six weeks from March 1 to April 12, while 18 have a seven week calving period from March 25 to May 18.
The heifers have gone through the Elders Immune Ready program and have also been treated with Marks-Min which includes B12/Selenium in addition to being drenched in September/October.
Return vendor the McLarty family, Caris Park Grazing Co, Pinjarra, will offer 65 rising two-year-old heifers.
The draft will comprise 40 Angus and 25 Murray Greys which are due to calve to Gandy, Trafalgar and Blackrock Angus bulls for nine weeks from February 12 to April 15.
The McLartys consistently source their heifers from regular well-known commercial herds, with the Murray Greys being ex-Venturon bred heifers.
The heifers have been treated with Ultravac 5in1 twice and pour-on drenched with Cattlemax in January, 2023 and with Moxistar pour-on in July.
Well-known vendors of quality mated heifers Mark and Peta-Jane Harris, Treeton Lake, Cowaramup and Dardanup, have nominated 53 Angus, Red Angus and Speckle Park heifers.
All the heifers were purchased in as weaners and were prepared and joined with this sale in mind.
Angus heifers will make up the largest percentage of the Harris family's draft and are all based on Lawsons Angus bloodlines.
The Angus line will consist of 14 heifers, which are AI joined to Black Market Swindell S145 and due to calve from March 2 for 20 days and 20 heifers which are PTIC to Gandy Angus bulls and due to calve from March 23 to May 19 (eight weeks).
The sires used in the joining program were selected for their low to medium birthweights and high growth rates.
Also in the Harris family's draft will be 13 Red Angus heifers and six Speckle Park heifers.
All these heifers were joined to a Bandeeka blood Red Angus bull and are due to calve over a 10 week period from March 2 to May 12.
All the heifers, which have gone through the Elders Immune Ready program, were ear-notched tested when they purchased and then received Pestigard twice prior to joining which Mr Harris said gives the best chance of the heifer and the calf not having pestivirus.
Another large vendor of black heifers will be Warren Valley Farm, Quinninup, which has nominated 50 Angus beauties.
Elders, Pemberton representative Brad McDonnell said the offering from Warren Valley Farm will be a mix of owner-bred heifers and purchased in heifers, which are based predominantly on Lawsons Angus bloodlines.
The heifers were all AI'd to Chiltern Park Moe M6 on May 10 and then backed up with Gandy Angus bulls.
Thirty five of the heifers will be sold as synchro AI with a 20 day calving from February 12 to March 3, while the remaining 15 heifers are PTIC to the Gandy bulls and due to calve from March 4 to May 7.
Another line of Angus heifers to look out for will be offered by TJ & MB Waugh, Manjimup.
The line of 28 owner-bred heifers are based on Gandy Angus bloodlines and were synchro AI'd on May 12 to RR Endeavor.
The line has a 20 day calving period from February 12 to March 3 and has been through Elders Ready Immune program.
Other vendors to offer 20 or more PTIC Angus heifers include Bacchus Farms, Busselton, Whicher Park, Donnybrook and B & L Fleay, Donnybrook.
Whicher Park's offering will consist of 22 heifers that were synchro AI'd to an Angus bull on May 18 and then backed up with Angus bulls.
The line is due to calve from February 18 to April 21.
Bacchus Farms has nominated 28 heifers which are PTIC to Angus bulls and due to calve from March 12 to May 28, while B & L Fleay will offer 20 heifers which are PTIC Blackrock Angus bulls and due to calve from March 1 to May 10.
Both lines are Elders Immune Ready.
For producers looking for heifers that aren't black, there will be some very good lines of Red Angus and Murray Grey heifers on offer from return vendors.
Anniebrook producer Norm Dennis, GF Dennis & Co, will return to the sale with 25 rising two-year-old Red Angus heifers.
The well-bred and prepared roomy heifers are due to calve to a Willandra Red Angus bull selected specifically for a heifer mating for seven weeks from February 27 to April 16.
The quiet Willandra blood heifers have been specially joined and prepared for this sale and received a 7in1 vaccine and were backlined drenched in November.
In terms of Murray Grey heifers, return vendors the Bagshaw family, Young Guns Murray stud, Hyden an ST Francis, Dardanup, will feature in the catalogue.
The Bagshaw family have nominated 10 PTIC Murray Grey heifers, which are based on their own stud bloodlines.
They are back in calf to Young Guns Murray Grey bulls selected for low birthweight and low maintenance traits and are due to calve for six weeks from March 15 to April 29.
The offering from ST Francis, will consist of 18 Murray Grey heifers along with 10 Angus heifers.
All heifers are PTIC to an Angus bull and due to calve from March 1 to May 9 for 10 weeks.
